Super Suits, Chains and a Light Amount of Trust
by YashaIgnisVolk
Summary: Lux wasn't expecting to wake up after her last battle with her nemesis Unchained, yet here she was. Still alive, still hurting but with a new ally at her back she'll find a way to pull through. Cause that's what superheroes do.


Lux could feel a headache coming on as she was brought back to consciousness. Compounded by the familiar ache in her chest of a bruised rib-cage, and the creeping exhaustion that accompanied power depletion, the young superhero could say with certainty that today was not one of her better days. With a quiet grunt, Lux forced herself to sit up, palming the sleep from her eyes as she tried to piece together how she ended up wherever she was.

'Wherever' turned out to be a sparsely furbished bedroom. Plain white sheets covered the bed she'd been sitting on, a small nightstand to her side and across the room she could see a set of weights that was reminiscent of her brother's due to their large size. With no obvious threats in sight, Lux thought it best to keep taking stock of her situation as she tried to stand up from the bed. It was a short lived attempt as the pain of moving mixed with a wave of nausea to send her crumbling back.

"Alright, walking is for emergencies only then." She joked to the empty air, as she pressed a hand against various spots on her torso. Definitely bruised, if not recently healed ribs that she shouldn't be putting pressure on. Her examination also brought her to a realization that escaped her earlier.

She was no longer in her super-suit. Someone had changed her clothes, leaving her in a dark blue t-shirt and dull gray jogging pants, both of which were far too large for her. More importantly, someone now knew her secret identity.

Unchained. The thought came to Lux as her memories started to catch up to her. She had been fighting with the super-villain Unchained, and he had gotten more than a few lucky shots in. She could remember the back alley she had ducked into as she was forced to retreat and wait for backup. Backup that didn't arrive before the Demacian Suppression Task Force. Lux could remember the blaring of the sirens and the sound of boots as various officers started to quarantine off the streets in an attempt to apprehend both super-powered individuals ducking it out in the middle of the day. Then pain, then soothing relief and finally blackness.

A short knock brought her back to the present as the bedroom door opened a crack. Just enough to let a low, familiar voice sneak through as she tried once again to stand up.

"You decent in there, Luxanna?"

The life of a superhero was one filled with unexpected situations, not similar to her current one. This would not be her first attempted kidnapping. Usually though she was strapped to a table, surrounded by elaborate death traps or hanging over a bit of ravenous, mutant animals, among various other convoluted schemes made up by the vast gallery of characters that made up the empowered criminals of Demacia.

But nothing could prepare her for the figure that appeared through the door after she uttered a confused "Yes."

Sylas Dregbourne, her very own teacher, standing at the doorway in a cut-off T and a bottle of water in one hand and a box of Aspirin in the other, Lux almost wanted to descend into a fit of hysteric laughter. Her life was over. Her favorite teacher knew she had superpowers, had most likely seen her naked while treating her wounds, and now caught her gaping like a slack-jawed fish in his own bedroom. She could only imagine what he thought of her now.

"You might want to sit down." She heard Sylas say, in that tone reserved for students on the brink of cracking under the pressure of exams. Lux could only nod as she eased herself back onto the bed. She watched as he took the slow, deliberate steps towards her, setting the water bottle and Aspirin on the nightstand within reach, before taking a seat at the foot of the bed, looking at her in that patient, deliberate matter she had grown used to when she stayed after class to ask for help she didn't need just to spend time with him.

"How are you feeling Luxanna?" He asked.

She took a brief moment to try to think of a response that could save her. One little bright idea of a lie that meant she could walk out of this situation like it never happened. Like she was cosplaying Lady Luminosity and ran into the actual Unchained and managed to get away with only a minor life threatening case of injuries because he realized she wasn't the real deal. Yeah, she thought to herself with a spark of delusional optimism, that'll work.

"I've had better days..." Is what she came out of her mouth with a defeated sigh.

"I can only imagine." Sylas chuckled. "Take a couple of those, they'll at least take the edge off for now." He said, motioning to the nightstand.

She reached over, thankful that the box of Aspirin was close so she didn't have to stretch, and opened it. Three moments later, she had two pills down her throat followed by a drink of water without hesitation. Setting both of them back beside the bed, she turned back to her teacher, unsure of what to say. Sorry, or thank you, would have been a good start but she had no follow up.

"Thank you for...just.. you know.. Did you... did you tell anyone about... you know?" She said, unable to meet his gaze.

She felt, more than saw Sylas put a reassuring hand on her shin, giving it a light squeeze to get her attention. Raising her eyes, she was met with a familiar mischievous grin, and deep blue eyes.

"Your secret is safe with me Luxanna," A wave of relief washed over her at Sylas's quiet promise, and she could feel the tears start to well up in her eyes. "Hey... Hey.." Sylas said, pulling her into a comforting hug as she started to bawl. "I'm here for you..You're safe." He reassured her as he palmed small circles into her back.

If only that was true. If only she could believe that comforting lie. It had been too close of a call. It was by some miracle that Sylas had found her, instead of the Suppression Task Force. Lux could only image what she'd have woken up to in their custody. Power-sealing handcuffs, and a locked room. She had no doubt her parents would be informed at the earliest opportunity, and how it would devastate them that their own daughter was one of the Supers that they railed against.

Instead, she had found herself a shoulder to cry on as the stress of her secret started to crack her facade. In the back of her mind, she knew she didn't have the time to sit around crying like a lost child, Unchained knew her secret-identity. But in this moment, at the end of the latest close call she clung on to the one source of comfort available to her.

Minutes later, Lux found herself and started to compose herself. Reluctantly, she pulled away from Sylas and began to wipe away the tears.

"Sorry for ruining your shirt." She muttered as she stared down at the mess her breakdown had left behind.

A gentle touch of Sylas's hand under her chin as he raised her gaze to meet his. She could see the pain she felt in her chest mirrored back at her. "Luxanna, you bear a burden that few would have the strength to carry. You do it without reward, and at a great risk to yourself. Doing an extra load of laundry this week is hardly a comparable sacrifice."

"We all have our own burdens to bear, I suppose." She joked with a small, hiccuping laugh.

"Good to hear." He said as he brushed aside a stray tear with his thumb. She knew she was flushing from the almost casual contact. Another reassuring pat on the shin and Sylas stood up. He extended her a hand. "Bathroom is on the left if you need it."

"And where are you going?" She asked as she took the offered hand to stand up. Still in pain, and wobbly, but a manageable enough amount.

"Get some hot chocolate going, while you clean yourself up. Then, heal you up, and figure out how you want to proceed."

Hot chocolate sounded lovely right now, but one part of that sentence stuck out to her. "Heal me, how?" She asked.

**AN:** Think that's a good point to stop it. Not sure if I will continue this, or let it remain as a one-shot, I'll see how the response is. But yes, I thought a super-heroes/super-villian would work perfectly for these two. Anyways, hope you enjoyed the story, and have a good day!


End file.
